Transportation device



May 17, 1938. M. P. NELSON TRANSPORTATION DEVICE Filed Feb. 3, 193'?4unal...

3,0 l INVENTOR.

M. R 50N ATTORNEYS Patented May 17, 1938 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICETRANSPORTATION DEVICE Martin P. Nelson, Rutherford, N. J.

Application February 3, 1937, Serial No. 123,761 3 claims. (c1. 28o- 50)The invention relates to transportation devices and more particularly tounits for transporting liquids as exemplified, for instance, by milk,from one place to another which in the 5 case of milk would be forexample from the socalled country plant to a pasteurizing anddistributing plant located in a distant city or other place. The objectof the invention is to provide a transporting device or unit ofpredetermined capacity and of maximum mobility designed to reduce thetransportation of the commodity for which it is intended to an operationof maximum simplicity. The invention contemplates further the provisionof a device of the indicated type capable of being manually manipulatedwith a minimum of eiTort, which will eliminate the necessity forrepeated handling of the commodity, andavoid harmful disturbance of saidcommodity while in transit. Other objects will appear from thedescription hereinafter and the features of novelty will be pointed outin the claims.

In the accompanying drawing which illustrates an example of theinvention without defining its limits, Fig. 1 is a longitudinalsectional View of the novel transportation device or unit, and Fig.

2 is an end elevation thereof with parts broken away.

The illustrated example, selected for purposes of-disclosure anddescription and without intent to dene the limits of the invention,shows the novel transportation device or unit in a form designed totransport milk for instance from. the so-called country plant whichreceives the milk from the dairy farmers to a pasteurizing anddistributing plant located in a distant city or other place. It will beobvious that the novel device or unit is not restricted to thetransportation of milk and that it may be utilized for transportingother liquids from place to place VWith equal efficiency andcorresponding advantages; in addition, it is obvious that the noveldevice or unit may be adapted for the transporting of materials otherthan liquids. The description and claims are to be construedaccordingly.`

The novel transportation device shown in the drawing comprises a unitconsisting of a tank 5 provided interiorly with suitable insulation 6 toprotect the interior of the tank 5 from the effects of externaltemperature conditions. The

tank 5 is further lined with a shell l of stainless steel, glass orother material which does not harmfully affect the milk or othercommodity transported in the unit, and thus comprises outer and innershells 5 and I spaced apart with an intermediate layer of insulatingmaterial 6 lo- `for instance as illustrated in Fig. 2. Any concatedbetween said lshells 5 and 1. In the selected example the tank 5 is ofcylindrical shape with the rear end wall 8 and adjacent insulation 6 andshell l thereof curved outwardly, and the -front wall 9 and contiguousinsulation 6 and shell 5 l, which may also be curved outwardly, providedwith a'depressed section I0 forming a frontend recess I I as shown inFigs. 1 and 2. In practice provision is made to permit ingress to theinterior of the tank 5 for purposes of cleaning, :10 repair and the likefor instance by providing the depressed section I0 with a manhole oropen* ing I2 suiciently large to permit a human being to easily passtherethrough into the interior of the tank 5. The manhole or opening I2normally -15 is closed by means of a suitable closure or cover I3preferably located in the interior of the tank 5 and sealed in anyconventional manner to prevent leakage through the manhole or openingI2; for instance the closure or cover I3, as shown, 2O may be providedwith a peripheral sealing gasket I 4 to guard against leakage. Tofacilitate manipulation of the closure or cover i3, a suitable handleI3a may be conveniently provided thereon 5 venient locking means may beprovided for movably securing the closure or cover i3 in its operative,sealing position; as illustrated, the locking means may consist of ascrew-threaded stem I5 pivotally connected at It with said closure or 30cover I3 and adapted to project through and beyond a suitable openingprovided in a locking member Il. The latter in its operative positionextends diametrically across the manhole or opening I2 and is ofsufficient length to engage y35 the outer surface of the depressedsection I0 adjacent to said manhole or' opening I2 las illus# trated inthe drawing; for-convenience and to prevent misplacing thereof, thelocking member may be carried by and is preferably pivoted upon 40 anarm I 8 pivotally attached at I9 to the outer face cf the depressedsection it. The illustrated locking means further includes a locking nut2li arranged for screw-threaded connection with the threaded end of thestem I5 and preferably pro- 4' vided with handles 2l projecting radiallyoutward from said nut 2E! to facilitate operation thereof. The commodityfor which the unit is designed, such as milk, may be introduced andremovedv from the tank 5 at will in any con- 50 Venient manner.Preferably, however, particularly when the unit is intended fortransporting milk, the tank 5 may be provided with a pipe 22 extendingthrough the depressed section I0 for instance at a lower point of therecess II. The 55 pipe 22 is controlled by means of any customary typeof valve 23 capable of manual manipulation and further includes aconventional coupling device 24 for detachably connecting a tube or thelike with said pipe 22. In addition, a suitable relief valve 25 islocated at the upper portion of the tank 5, for instance at the forwardend thereof, for automatically relieving air pressure in the tank 5during filling, and for automatically admitting4 air to said tank 5during the Withdrawal of the contents therefrom. In some instances itmay be desirable to introduce a pressure fluid into the tank 5 forinstance to force the contents thereof out through the pipe 22. to bedone the relief valve 25 may include a suitable coupling device 25 forconnecting a pressure tube or the like with the interior of the tank 5.

To enable the unit to be readily moved about or in other words toprovide the desired mobility and ease in handling the unit particularlywithin confined limits, the tank 5 is mounted upon a suitable carriageand preferably fixed in place there- .on in any convenient manner.

vIn the illustrated example the carriage consists of side members 26located in spaced parallel relation and provided with seats 21 curved tot the lcylindrical surface of the, tank 5; correspondingly curved crossmembers 28 extend between and connect the side members. 26 at spacedpoints and in co-operation with the seats 21 of the latter provide acradle in which the tank 5 issupported and preferably fixed in anywellknown Way. The cradle is mounted upon Wheels 29 which may includerubber tires, if desired, and in any case .are of predetermineddimensions, as forA instance diameters of from ten to twelve inches. Tostill further increase the mobility of the unit, the wheels 29 aremounted on ball or roller bearings in customary manner in brackets 30vwhich are in sWiveled connection with the side members 26 of theaforesaid cradle; With this arrangement, the Wheels 29 and theirbrackets 36 constitute swiveled devices or'casters in which the wheels29 in addition to rotating about their horizontal axes are pivotallyadjustable with the brackets 30 about vertical axes relatively to theside members 26.V By thus mounting the cradle the unit is not onlyeasily moved about in the direction of the major axis of the tank 5, butis capable of being moved in directions transverse to said axis withlittle effort; at the same time, the. direction of movement of the unitmay be readily changed at will so that said unit may be efficientlymoved about within confined spaces or areas. To facilitate the aforesaidmanipulation of the unit, one or more suitable devices may be provided.For instance, the tank may include a grip or handle 9a preferablylocated within a recess 9b formed at one end of the tank as illustratedin Figs. 1 and 2; if desired a similar grip or handle 9a may becorrespondingly arranged in a similar recess 91D at the opposite end ofthe tank. Obviously the handle 9a need not be located in a recess suchas the recess 9b at opposite ends of the tank and if desired may simplybe attached to the outside end walls thereof.

In the preferred form suitable provision is made to protect the tank 5against injury from impacts and to guard the device from other harmfulconditions developed during handling thereof or while said device is intransit. .This protecting means, as illustrated, may comprise side barsor bumpers 3| mounted in brackets 32 To permit this on the side members26 and extending lengthwise thereof, a cross-bar or bumper 33 extendingacross the rear end of the cradle and being secured in brackets 34 fixedupon the ends of the side members 26, and a cross-bar or bumper 35extending across the front end of said cradle; in the preferred form,the cross-bar 35 is mounted in brackets 36 carried upon the ends of theside members 26 so as to be easily removable from said brackets 36 andreplaceable therein to facilitate access to the coupling device 24 orthe valve 23 or both. The arrangement and dimensions are such that thebumper-bars 3|. 33 and 35 are located beyond the confines of the tank 5and thus serve to absorb any impacts and to otherwise protect the tank 5from injury during use and in transit.

In practice the tank 5 is of outside dimensions predetermined by the usefor which the device or unit is designed and predicated, for instance,upon the size of an-opening through which the tank 5 is to pass, andupon a predetermined factor exemplied, for instance, by a space in whichthe device or unit is to be accommodated. In

the selected example which is designed specially for transporting milk,the dimensions of said tank 5 may accordingly 'be determined by thedimensions of Va customary railroad milk car and more particularly withreference to the size of the door openings of such cars. Milk cars ofthe type in question belonging to one of the wellknown railway systemshave an inside Width of approximately nine feet two yand one-halfinches, and door openings which generally are about four feet Vsixinches wide and about six feet two inches high. It will be understoodthat these dimensions are not controlling excepting in determining thedimensions of the tanks 5 intended to be transported in the given milkcars or their equivalent; in other words,I in the case of milktransportation, the dimensions of the device and more particularly ofthe tank 5 thereof, will change in harmony'and accordance With anychanges in the dimensions of cars other than those quoted above.

With cars of the selected dimensions, the tank i 5 will have an outsidediameter, and the device or unit will have a heightto enable the same topass easily through the indicated door openings of the milk oar.designed for use with cars of the indicated interior width will be abouteight feet so that the unit or device may easily be accommodated withinsaid car with the tank 5 in a transverse position there- 1n. shape, maybe of rectangular cross-section with rounded internal corners, or saidtank 5 may be oval, elliptical or otherwise shaped in cros's'- section.

The tank 5, which may have a predetermined capacity for instance of onethousand gallons, may directly receive the milk supplied by the dairyfarmers at the country plant, or the milk may be introduced into thetank 5 from holding tank at the country plant by connecting a tube orits equivalent leading from the supply of milk, with the pipe 22 throughthe medium of the coupling device 24. The milk in the latter instancemay be passed into the tank 5 by gravity or it may be pumped orotherwise introduced through the pipe 22; when the tank 5 has beenfilled or received a predetermined quantity of milk, the Valve 23 isclosed. It will be understood that prior to its introduction eitherdirectly into the tank 5 or rst into the holding tank, the milk is Theaxial length of the tank 5 The tank 5, instead of being cylindrical ins;

"lill subjected to the customary treatment at the country plant, such astesting, Weighing, cooling etc. At the proper time the loaded unit ismanually propelled through the door of the milk car and shifted to aposition therein with the tank 5 extending transversely of the car.Successive units are similarly propelled through the car door andshifted to a corresponding position within said car, so that nally thelatter will be filled to capacity with lled units located side by sideand with all of the tanks 5 extending transversely of the car. Ifnecessary, the units may be secured in safe riding positions within thecar in any convenient manner as by means of suitable brakes acting onthe Wheels 29 or by chains or the like attached to the carriages andconvenient parts of the car, or the chains or their equiva- -lent may beused to supplement the holding action of the brakes. To enable thechains or their equivalent, when used, to be easily attached to theunits, the latter may be provided with eyebolts 26a depending, forinstance, from the side members 26 as shown in Fig. 1; it will beobvious that the eye-bolts 2lia may be located upon other convenientportions of the units and also that said eye-bolts a may be replaced byother suitable devices.

When the car reaches its destination, the filled units or devices aresuccessively removed from the car through the door thereof for transfer,for instance, to a pasteurizing and distributing plant. Throughout thetransportation to the nal destination the milk remains 'in the tanks 5and is removed therefrom only at the pasteurizing plant at theconvenience of those in charge at such plant. The removal of the milkfrom the tanks 5 may be accomplished in any convenient manner as bymeans of a suitable pump coupled to the pipe 22, or by introducing apressure medium through the valve 25, and said milk may be transferredfrom the tanks 5 directly to the pasteurizing tanks or their equivalent.

When the tanks 5 have been emptied, the closure I3 may be unlocked andremoved to permit a person to pass through the manhole or opening l2 tothe interior of said tank 5 for the purpose of cleaning the same. As allinterior parts of the tank 5 are readily accessible to the cleaner, thiscleaning operation may be performed in a most thorough and ecientmanner, so that the device may always be readily maintained in asanitary condition.

If desired, the milk supplied to the country plant by the dairy farmersmay as previously stated, be emptied directly into the tanks 5 of thenovel device in which case said tanks 5, in addition to functioning asshipping tanks also serve as holding or receiving tanks and thereby doaway with the customary holding containers which, under existingconditions, generally receive the milk at the country plant forsubsequent transfer therefrom.

By locating the valve 23 and the locking elements associated with theclosure or cover lli within the recess Il at the forward end of the tank5, said Valve 23 and said locking elements are arranged within theconnes of the tank 5 which accordingly is free from projecting elementstending to interfere with the manipulan tion of the units and toincrease the space necessary to accommodate the same; the novel unitsare thus Very compact and accordingly may be compactly positioned incontiguous relation to each other for instance within a given milk carso that the interior space thereof is utilized to a maximum degree.

In transferring milk from the dairy farm to a destination exemplied, forinstance, by a pasteurizing plant located at a distant point, it hasbeen the custom for the dairy farmers to deliver the milk to a so-calledcountry plant where such milk, generally speaking, is temporarily storedin a holding tank or other receptacle. In transporting the milk from thecountry plant, it has long been the custom toA transfer the milk fromthe previously mentioned holding tank to individual cans which,generally speaking, have a capacity for instance of forty quarts each.These cans with the milk therein were then transferred to railroad milkcars or other Vehicles for conveyance to a predetermined destination asexemplified, for instance, by a station or terminal of the aforesaidrailroad car or other vehicle; during such transportation the cans wererequired to be heavily iced in order to properly preserve the milkduring such transit.V From the aforesaid station or terminal theindividual cans were conveyed by means of a suitable truck or otherconveyance to the above mentioned destination as exemplified, forinstance, by the pasteurizing plant from which the pasteurized milk wasdelivered to the ultimate consumers or to dealers of milk for resale tosuch consumers after having previously been bottled in the conventionalmanner. This method of transporting the milk required this commodity tobe handled successively many times and in addition, required theindividual handling of the relatively large number of containers for agiven quantity of milk, as exemplified by the aforesaid forty quartcans.

In order to overcome the many objections existing in the type oftransportation described above, the individual forty quart cans or theirequivalent were superseded by railroad cars provided, for instance, withtwo large tanks each having, for instance, a capacity of 3000 gallonsinto which tanks the milk was introduced from the holding tank at theso-called country plant and then delivered to a station or otherterminal of the railroad to which the tank car belonged. In some casesinstead of the tank car, the milk was transported to a destination in atank truck generally of the automotive type into which the milk wastransferred from the holding tank at the country plant. In the case ofthe railroad tank car, when the terminal was reached, the milk wastransferred from the tanks of said tank car, for instance, into the tankof a tank truck and delivered by this vehicle to the pasteurizing plant.While the tank car and tank truck possess many advantages over the longestablished and accepted practice of can transportation, the method oftransporting milk by tankv car or tank truck still possesses manyinherent disadvantages such as the necessity for expensive specialequipment and the multiplicity of successive handlings of the milk whichwas required in the several transferring operations.

The instant novel unit whereby the milk is transported for instance fromthe so-called country plant to the pasteurizing plant overcomes all ofthe disadvantages and objections of the can transportation and the tankcar and tank truck transportation and reduces the operation oftransporting the milk from the dairy farmer to the pasteurizing plant toan operation of maximum simplicity in which the necessity for repeatedhandling of the milk is eliminated and harmful disturbance of the milkwhile in transit is avoided.

AIl() This is particularly true when the milk is delivered by the dairyfarmers to the country plant and at this plant is introduced directlyinto the tanks 5 of the novel device or unit hereinbefore described. Inthis latter instance, the unit in addition to serving as a holding orreceiving tank serves also as a shipping tank and in such case obviatesthe necessity for pumping the milk to a holding tank for later transferto a tank car or tank truck. Furthermore, if the instant novel device orunit is used as a holding or receiving tank at the country plant, itavoids the necessity for a special holding tank at such country plantand results in one handling of the milk from the time of scaling andother customary treatment after receipt from the dairy farmer, untilready for pasteurization in the pasteurizing plant. This method ofhandling the milk establishes service Without requiring the installationof special facilities outside of the country plant as exemplified, forinstance, by sewage, drainage and other equipment.

Because of the relatively smaller size of the tanks 5 comprising part ofthe novel device or unit, such tanks will more often be completelyfilled With milk thereby avoiding undesirable agitation and movement ofthe milk en route as is generally the case in tank cars or tank trucksonly partially lled with the milk; this lessens to a marked degree thebreaking down of fat globules in the milk and results in many otheradvantages. Because of the relatively small size of the unit and due toits being mounted upon the swiveled or caster type of wheels, the deviceor unit may be easily moved about in country and other plants as well asin cars and upon trucks. In addition, the size of the unit or devicemakes it just as adaptable to the small milk company as to the largecompany; because of the large investment necessarily involved in theownership or rental of tank cars and tank trucks, such small milkcompanies under existing conditions are often discouraged and reluctantto undertake bulk transportation of milk from place to p-lace asindicated above.

With the novel device or unit coupling-and uncoupling of the tankconnection as well as cleaning of the interior and exterior of the tanksmay be accomplished under cover, for instance, Within a milk plant,thereby providing sanitary conditions of maximum efhciency andpreventing contamination by outside elements. The use of 'the unit ordevice also dispenses entirely with rail terminal agitation and pumpingtogether with the objectionable consequences resulting therefrom.

The novel device or unit involves only the cleaning of a single tank asagainst the present necessity for cleaning the holding tank at thecountry plant, the tank cars and tank trucks, and the immediatetank-truck cleaning when diverting the same, for instance, for theholding of grade A milk after having immediately prior thereto been usedfor handling grade B milk. The transporting of the novel device or unitfrom the railroad or other terminal to the pasteurizing plant may beaccomplished by a vehicle available for all types of service by theowner such as an automotive truck rather than as at present by means ofa special vehicle as exemplified, for

the instant novel device does not interfere with.

the continued and independent use of the transporting vehicles wherebythe novel devices or units are conveyed. The novel device or unitfurthermore dispenses with the relatively large investment in tank carsand tank trucks Which e is now required and avoids also the expense ofrepairs and maintenance of such tank cars and truck as well as thenecessity for providing and maintaining the customary agitators, motors,filters, and unloading equipment, etc,

The novel device or unit provides a safe, sanitary and convenient systemof handling the milk from country plant to pasteurizing plant or itsequivalent and meets all of the requirements of the boards of health andother oflicial bodies,

having jurisdiction.

While the novel device or unit is particularly designed for andespecially adapted to the transporting of milk and its relatedcommodities in the manner set forth hereinbefore, it is obvious thatsaid device or unit may be used with equal efficiency and advantages forthe transportation of other liquids as well as materials which are notliquid.

Various changes in the speciiic forms shown,

and described may be made within the scope of the claims withoutdeparting from the spirit of the invention.

I claim:

1. A unitary vehicle for transporting liquids in a railway freight carcomprising a tank having means of access for cleaning said tank, meansfor lling and emptying said tank sub-stantially within the margin-allimits of said tank, said tank dimensioned in axial length proportionalto a, predetermined factor as exemplified by the interior width of arailway freight car, and dirigible Wheels mounted beneath said tank,said wheels being in all positions substantially within the marginallimits of said tank. Y

2. A unitary vehicle for transporting liquids in a railway freight carcomprising a tank having means of access for cleaning said tank, meansfor lling and emptying said tanksubstantially Within the marginal limitsof said tank, said tank dimensioned in axial length to a predeterminedfactor as exemplified by the interior width of a railway freight car,said tank dimensioned in width to another predetermined factor, asexemplified by the width of the door opening of a railway freight car,and dirigible wheels mounted beneath said tank, said wheels being in allpositions substantially within the marginal limits of said tank.

3. A unitary vehicle as claimed in claim 1, said tank having a bumperextending substantially around the marginal limits of said tank, theouter edges of said bumper extending but slightly beyond the marginallimits of said tank.

' MARTIN P. NELSON.

